South of the Border
by xmylasttango
Summary: AU, Drake/Josh: If you asked Josh Nichols how he ended up in bed with a perfect stranger, he'd tell you it was due to his lack of better judgment.


**A bit of vacation AU with my favorite boys. Enjoy!**

* * *

If you asked Josh Nichols how he ended up in bed with a perfect stranger, he'd tell you it was due to his lack of better judgment. But in reality, he knew what he was doing was right, and the man wasn't _really _a stranger. He knew just enough about him to make him qualify as an acquaintance, not a _stranger_. Josh Nichols wouldn't stoop so low as to sleep with a _stranger_.

He knew that his name was Drake Parker. He was from San Diego. He was an up and coming musician. He was a singer and guitar player. He had the most sparkling, deep brown eyes Josh had ever seen. He had a laugh that lit up a room. He said Josh's name better than anyone else ever had. He had a spray of freckles across his cheeks and on his chest that gave Josh the urge to lick every single one. He was perfect.

Okay, so Josh didn't know much, but he was in Mexico on spring break and crazy things were bound to happen, especially once he and his friends found themselves lost in a bar that played loud salsa music and served drinks in every color of the rainbow. He found Drake sitting at the end of the bar checking out the band that was setting up to play. The flashing lights of the club made Drake's auburn hair shine brightly under their glow and the way he bit his lip as though he was thinking quite hard about something made Josh notice him instantaneously. He knew this was four shades of wrong, but as Drake shifted in bed and cuddled even closer to Josh, being wrong never felt so right.

"_Buy you a drink?" Josh asked the mystery man, wondering where his sudden confidence had come from now that he'd ditched his friends._

_The man turned around a shot Josh a smile that made his knees go weak. "Sure," he replied, fixing his attention on Josh instead of the band he was intently checking out. _

"_What do you want?"_

"_Whatever you're having." He batted his ridiculously long eyelashes in Josh's direction._

_With a nod, Josh took the stool next to the man and slapped his hand on the counter, just barely loud enough to catch the attention of the bartender over the music. "Two Palomas please," Josh ordered, trying to absorb as much of the Mexican culture as he possibly could._

"_I've never had that before," Drake laughed, "but I'll trust you have good taste. After all, you did come onto me." He winked and flipped his hair out of his eyes._

_Josh felt his face flush; he had never been good at flirting. "Yeah, of course I do."_

"_I'm Drake." He held out his hand._

_Taking Drake's hand in his, Josh replied, "I'm Josh. Where are you from, anyway? Not around here."_

"_I'm from San Diego. Just here on a little vacation – I'm recording my first album, and I needed a break. I'm trying not to pull my hair out because if I'm ever famous, it could be worth a lot someday. What about you?"_

"_Oh, you're a musician? That's…that's so awesome! I always thought I could be a really great manager for someone because it looks like a lot of fun, but the opportunity has never been presented to me, well, until now, I guess, so if you're interested, you know…"_

"_Maybe." Drake snaked his hand over to Josh's jeans inching toward his zipper. "I'm more interested in other things, though. So, where are _you_ from?"_

"_New York. I go to school at NYU, and I'm on spring break."_

"_What are you studying?" Drake asked, picking up the drink that had just been set down in front of him and taking a small sip. "Good choice." He licked his lips, and Josh realized he wasn't as strong as he'd previously thought._

"_Forensics," Josh answered, resisting the urge to lick the fruity drink off Drake's now shiny, liquid covered lips._

"_I'm not even going to pretend I know what that means," Drake chuckled, finally pulling his hand away from Josh's thigh. "I barely got through high school."_

_Josh smiled, looking down at his drink. "It's not that exciting, anyway. Not like your record deal!"_

"_I hope it all goes well." He ran his hand through his hair. "It's a lot of stress right now, and I'm not sure why I'm telling you this cause I know you don't care."_

"_No, I do," Josh answered, feeling a grin spread across his lips. "All we are is strangers – rant away."_

* * *

_Five drinks, what seemed like thousands of personal stories, and two hours later, they were stumbling out of the club with Drake nipping gently on Josh's ear. "Taxi!" Josh yelled drunkenly down the street at absolutely nothing in particular, laughing as Drake clung to his waist. A few onlookers sought the source of the scream and shook their heads seeing how drunk the two men were. "There are no fuckin' taxis around here."_

"_Joshie, it's late! That's why," Drake mumbled, falling into Josh as they made their way down the sidewalk. "And your hotel or mine?"_

_Josh giggled, melting into Drake's body. He kissed his cheek gently. "Mine."_

* * *

"_I've never done this before," Josh told Drake between kisses, sinking into his hotel room bed as Drake frantically undid his zipper._

_Drake pressed his lips to Josh's and let out a small chuckle into his throat. "Don't worry. I've got you covered."_

"_Are you sure?" _

"_Stop talking," Drake whispered with a smile, grabbing his black curls in his hands and feeling Josh bury his fists in his shirt._

_Everything started moving far too fast to Josh as clothing flew across the room, sloppy kisses were planted on every inch of bare skin, and moans of the utmost pleasure were elicited. Josh was sure he saw stars, and with the sounds coming from Drake's mouth, he was pretty sure he felt the same._

"_Fuck, Josh," Drake panted, pulling the covers up around him with a satisfied smile curling his lips, "just…fuck."_

"_Was it good?" Josh laughed, still trying to catch his breath._

_He grinned, tracing invisible lines on Josh's bare chest. "So good."_

As Josh tried to remember everything else that happened that night, he couldn't seem to piece it all together. He threaded his fingers through the sleeping Drake's hair and sighed. The drinks and euphoria had mixed together to form a hazy memory of the evening. He desperately longed to go back to sleep, but his overactive brain was working to put the puzzle back together. He certainly didn't object to the beautiful man lying to his right, but he wished the night wasn't such a blur.

Josh finally decided that instead of overthinking, he should enjoy the moment for what it was. He pulled Drake closer to his chest and heard the smaller man let out a contented moan. Looking down at Drake lying across his chest with the faint trace of a smile resting on his lips, he'd never felt more serene. He fell back to sleep with a grin on his face.

* * *

Josh awoke to sunlight streaming through the curtains and a pounding head. "Drake?" he whispered, opening his eyes to see an empty bed. "Drake?" he asked, louder yet, sitting up and looking frantically around his hotel room, sighing when he realized that he was alone again.

And just like that, Drake with the soft auburn hair and the deep, sparkling eyes and the bright, cheerful laugh was gone, forever remaining only in Josh's memories and the one photo on his cell phone that they'd taken together. Josh buried his face in his hands, angry at his own stupidity and naiveté. He really thought Drake would still be there in the morning. There was an undeniable connection, and apparently Drake felt it, too, for there was a note lying on the pillow; he hadn't left without saying goodbye. In hurried, scrawled handwriting it said, "Josh, thanks for last night. I can't stay, but I'll never forget you. xo Drake."

Josh just hoped he really wouldn't forget.

* * *

Two months later, a song on the radio caught Josh's ear. As the catchy melody came to a finish, the DJ exclaimed, "That was the latest from Drake Parker!"

Josh managed to erase Drake Parker and that night from his mind, knowing that remembering all he could would do him no good. He knew that if he clung to that night, hoping that Drake would come back to him, he'd only be left with heartbreak. It took him a little while, but eventually he was able to forget that any of it had happened, and he let the memories wash away with the tide. Soon enough, though, he found himself at a record store to pick up Drake's new album. It was only right to hear the songs Drake had told him about writing. Josh made sure to buy a physical copy because he vaguely remembered Drake saying something about how lame iTunes made the music industry look, especially when some albums have such beautiful cover art.

Josh left the album unopened and tossed aside on his kitchen counter for three days before he could even think about opening it and taking a listen. When he finally got around to listening to the album, he took a deep breath. Josh could barely bring himself to look at the cover art, seeing the face that he'd inadvertently fallen for so quickly. Gingerly putting the CD in his laptop, he felt his heart burst as the first song blasted through his speakers:

_Summer love south of the border_

_Offered a tempting price that I did pay._

_When I went south of the border,_

_I lost myself amidst the crowd._

_I lost my worries and my cares._

_I lost my fear to laugh out loud._

_I never questioned the reason_

_That we'd ever have to part._

_When I went south of the border,_

_I lost my heart._

Josh just smiled. Drake never forgot.


End file.
